New chief of Milton Keynes health group will earn £40k for working one and a half days a week

The Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes Integrated Care System (BLMK) was set up at a cost of millions of pounds to seek improvements and cash savings for the NHS.

It brings together 16 partners including Milton Keynes University Hospital, Bedford Hospital and Luton & Dunstable University Hospital , as well as NHS community trusts, ambulance services and local councils.

The position of independent chair was advertised this week – but has already been slammed as a “waste of cash” by critics.

The ad states: “We are now seeking to appoint an Independent Chair to take us to the next stage of development. This represents an outstanding opportunity to shape the evolution of BLMK ICS and in doing so influence new models of care delivery.”

It adds: “A crucial leadership role, the new Chair will need to work across all partners and will also act as an ambassador for the system, building and enhancing relationships with a wide range of stakeholders locally, regionally and nationally including Health and Wellbeing Boards, NHS England and Improvement, Care Quality Commission (CQC) and local communities.”

The advert states the job involves working 1.5 days a week and the salary is “circa £40K”.

A senior source from Milton Keynes council, which is one of the BLMK partner organisation, was not impressed.

The source said: “Millions and millions of NHS funding, time and effort has been lost to perpetual reviews that achieve nothing. Any potential improvement ideas have been lost to a maze of jargon, a layer of tone deaf NHS administrators and an army of expensive consultants, all competing to justify their next expensive road to nowhere.

“Even most people who are close to this have lost track of all the structures and what they are supposed to be doing.

“If anyone thinks the idea of paying some has been ex-NHS boss or ex-MP will solve the problem that the local CCG management are remote and useless or that the NHS is full of vested interests more interested in getting funding into their own coffers than patient care, then they are deluded.”

The source concluded: “The whole thing is now so totally impenetrable and complex as to be next to worthless, unless it’s part of your job to keep up the pretence something worthwhile is happening. What a waste of money!”